This book tells the story of how a remarkable metal alloy— Nitinol—reshaped modern medicine. With its unique ability to bend, compress, and then spring back into a precise form, Nitinol became the foundation for devices that could be delivered through tiny openings and expand inside the body to restore blood flow or repair damaged vessels.

From the first experimental spiral stents to today’s sophisticated drug-eluting and graft-covered designs, this book traces the scientific breakthroughs, engineering ingenuity, and clinical milestones that turned Nitinol stents into life-saving tools used around the world. It highlights the visionaries who pioneered the field, the challenges they overcame, and the innovations still unfolding—such as retrievable implants and personalized designs made possible by advanced manufacturing.

At once a history of discovery, a chronicle of medical progress, and a glimpse into the future, Bloodline of Nitinol Stents shows how one alloy has transformed patient care and continues to shape the possibilities of minimally invasive medicine.

Dr. Iosif Rabkin is a renowned scientist and interventional radiologist who celebrates his centennial year. The richness of his life is defined not by its length, but by what he has created and shared with his followers. His professional journey was far from easy, spanning a remarkable path from a physician assistant to internationally recognized scientist. Iosif Rabkin was closely associated with and befriended the pioneers of interventional radiology, Charles Dotter and Andreas Grüntzig, and together with them was at the roots in building the foundation of this new medical discipline.  The nitinol shape-memory stent invented by Iosif Rabkin was implanted into a patient for the first time in clinical practice in 1984.  All his pioneering developments were carried out at the B. V. Petrovsky National Research Center of Surgery in Moscow, where Professor Rabkin led the Department of Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology for 35 years. Professor Rabkin’s scientific school includes 105 Doctors and Candidates of Medical Sciences. He is the author of 27 books and monographs and more than 560 scientific publications. He is a Corresponding Member of the Russian Academy of Sciences and an Honorary Member of the British Royal College of Radiology. He is a recipient of the USSR State Prize and has been awarded the A. L. Chizhevsky Gold Medal and the Wilhelm Roentgen Medal.  His principal scientific achievements are rooted in the interdisciplinary intersection of minimally invasive interventions and biomaterials science. A number of the bold innovations drawn from his century-long professional experience are described in this book. Despite his chronological age, his biological age remains remarkably young. He has overcome aging through exceptional personal qualities—optimism, a love of life, strength of will, intellectual curiosity, analytical thinking, perseverance, a sense of humor, and an enduring ability to share knowledge and listen to others.

Dr. Dmitry Rabkin is an interventional radiologist, innovator, and medical device expert whose professional career bridges clinical medicine, biomedical engineering, and translational research. He represents the next generation in the scientific lineage of interventional radiology, continuing and expanding the pioneering work that shaped the field.  Dmitry Rabkin earned his MD degree from the First Moscow Medical Institute and subsequently completed residency and fellowship training in Diagnostic and Interventional Radiology at Harvard Medical School. Since the early stages of his career, he has been actively involved in the development of interventional devices and innovative endovascular technologies. His doctoral research focused on the “Experimental Basis of Endovascular Stenting,” reflecting a long-standing commitment to advancing minimally invasive therapies. Dr. Rabkin has combined clinical excellence with entrepreneurial leadership. He has served as a co-founder and Chief Medical Officer of a medical device company and is the founder of a consulting firm specializing in interventional technologies and strategy. In recognition of his scientific contributions and leadership in the field, he was elected a Fellow of the Society of Interventional Radiology. Dr. Rabkin has been consistently recognized for his clinical expertise, earning designation as a Castle Connolly Top Doctor and a Boston Magazine Top Doctor every year since 2016. He has held leadership positions in Interventional Radiology at major Harvard Medical School–affiliated teaching hospitals. A dedicated physician, educator, and innovator, Dr. Rabkin is deeply passionate about his profession and is committed to teaching and mentoring future interventional radiologists. Through this work, Dmitry Rabkin contributes a contemporary perspective that connects historical innovation with modern practice and forthcoming directions in minimally invasive therapy.